The present invention relates generally to a lead screw carrier block and particularly to a separable carrier block structure to allow a worn lead screw carrier block to be easily and rapidly maintained and changed.
Carrier blocks are utilized, for example, in large machinery to support and move machine components in a continuous manufacturing process. The separable carrier block of the invention comprises mating, separable block body halves which permit the separation of the two block halves from a lead screw, and by reversing the process of the installation of the new carrier block halves.
Lead screw carrier blocks have been used for many years in machines, such as in a Marquip Model I splicing head, for example. A prior art carrier block is constructed as a unitary structure to carry and drive the splicing head structure throughout the machines operation by means of a mechanical system which converts rotational motion of the lead screw into the linear movement of the carrier block and the attached machine splicing structure.
Although prior art lead screw carrier block configurations are suitable for such purposes, they are difficult to service and to allow a worn carrier block to be maintained and rapidly changed. The main problem with conventional lead screw carrier blocks is that the design and configuration of the block makes change outs very time consuming due to the complexity of the mechanical components that need to be removed and then reinstalled. Another problem is that the maintenance checks as prescribed in OEM procedures are based on preventive schedules that are not necessarily accurate in gauging the true functionality of the carrier block. Another problem is the potential collateral damage caused to other machine components and loss of machine reliability when a carrier block has not been correctly serviced.
The separable carrier block of the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art and provides an assembly developed for the purpose of allowing a worn lead screw carrier block to be rapidly changed by unbolting two block body halves, separating them from the lead screw, and then reversing the process to install the new carrier block body halves.
In view of the disadvantages inherent in the known types of lead screw carrier blocks present in the prior art, the present invention provides a novel boltable split or separable carrier block construction which can be utilized for allowing a worn lead screw carrier block to be easily serviced and rapidly changed.